The Legend Of Zelda: Center Of Darkness
by Lord Seraphim
Summary: You've seen the triforce. Have you ever wondered why there is room for a fourth piece in the center? 2nd Edition, Change of Style and Rating, some Names changed as well.
1. Authors Note

Author's Note:

This is my second draft of "The Legend of Zelda: Center of Darkness" I did this because I felt it was necessary to start from the beginning, as I found many things I did not Like and needed to redo.

Anyway, please read and review the new story. New chapters will be updated in a biweekly manner (if so the Goddesses will.)


	2. Chapter 1: To Forge a Future

Disclaimer: "The Legend Of Zelda" Names of characters, places, etc. (C) by Nintendo.

My second attempt at this story, because the first one had so many problems connected with it That I more or less had to give it up. But now it's back! New and Improved!

This story takes place several years after the events in "Majora's Mask". I have also changed some details to fit my story better, so don't rip my head off ;)

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this, my "first" fanfic. Also I would appreciate any productive criticism from anyone.

Chapter 1: To Forge a Future

The big man in the flowing red robes looked across the table at the green clad youth. Between them lay a large purse filled to the bursting point with golden glowing jewels. The young man raised an inquiring eyebrow at his opposite.

"Is that all?" he asked calmly. The red man sighed.

"No," he said. "This is the advance payment. You will receive the remaining fifty thousand upon the safe return of my daughter."

The youngster smiled coldly. "Deal," he nodded, swiping the purse off the table. The old man sighed again and stood up from the stool on which he had been sitting.

"Then I can expect you to be at the palace at noon tomorrow?" he asked.

"I'll be there."

"Very well. Good day to you."

"As to you, your Majesty."

His Majesty Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule, King of Red Lions, Protector of the realm that is known to us as Hyrule, left the small, one room tree house in Kokiri Forest which Link, Hero of Time, called his home. It was really cluttered in there. Many items hung from the circular wall, like such things as a boomerang, a slingshot, a small short sword and several masks. Behind Link was an open window through which a small fairy fluttered serenely to sit on the table in front of Link, facing him.

"One hundred thousand rupees, Navi! Can you believe it?"

"Of course I can, Link," said the little being. "You've gotten greedy, you know. Don't you think asking the king if the fifty was all you were going to get a little fresh?"

"No, why? And besides, I can finally ask her! I've been waiting for months and finally I can!"

"You could have asked her before, you know. She wouldn't have said no."

"What do the two of you talk about behind my back, anyway?"

Navi puffed up her cheeks and looked away. "Girl talk. None of your business."

"Whatever. Come on, we gotta go to town. I need some things."

Even though it was late afternoon, almost evening, Hyrule Castle Town was bustling with activity. People running from shop to shop, banging into each other, laughing, talking, arguing. Link felt good being among the citizens of Hyrule, but as his eyes fell upon the palace, his face darkened. He strolled around Market Square for a while stopping only to buy a gold ring with a single emerald embedded into it from a jeweler's stand. Then he made his way to Shield Road, where all the smithies were located. He stopped in front of a new shop. What was special about this partucular one was the writing on it's sign: "Borgor's Kwaliti Plades". Link couldn't help but grin. He knew that the shop must belong to a Goron, because Borgor was not a Hylian name and he also knew that the Goron's were notoriously analphabetic. He stepped inside and, sure enough, there was a big, heavy, mountain dweller standing at the forge.

"Excuse me?" Link said.

"Aye," the Goron said, turning around. "How can I he..." He stopped in mid sentence, looking over from head to foot. "Well I'll be stoned if it isn't Brother Link! What can I do for you?"

At least that hasn't changed. Good old Darunia, still calling Link his brother. Darunia, King of the Gorons, was the Sage of Fire and the only one besides Saria Link could really talk to about "The Ganondorf Incident" as he had come to call it.

"I need a sword,"said Link. "A good one. Money doesn't matter."

Borgor scratched his cheek, a slightly worried expression flitting across his face, as if he didn't know what kind of blade he could make to befit the legendary Link. Then he suddenly grinned broadly. "Come back tomorrow morning. I'll have something ready for you."

Link Nodded and left the smithy. Not feeling like returning to the forest (which incidentally was impossible, as the Gates had already closed for the night), he decided to take a room at one of the inns. But before he could reach the door of his favorite place, "The Six Sages" hotel, he was stopped by a scrawny, slightly trembling royal guard.

"What?" Link snapped at him.

"By.. By royal decree, you, S-Sir Link of Hy-Hyrule..."

"Just get to the point, you jackass!" Link said violently. He never had much respect for the Royal guard. They were all cowards and would rather flee than do any fighting. The only thing they were any good at was archery, probably because they can do that from a reasonably safe distance, Link thought.

"Umm, I umm... The Princess wants to see you." the guard ducked as if half expecting Link to hit him. Link only snorted and made his way up to the palace.

"Sir Link!" the wimpy guard shouted after him. "I'm supposed to escor..."

Link turned around and shouted back: "I can find my own way! Just stay away from me!"

Link was furious.

_How dare she have the nerve to summon me like some errand-boy? I'll tell her just _what _I think about that._

Ignoring the guards at the main gate, who asked him for his reason for coming to the palace at this late an hour (_stupid guards cant even coordinate something as simple as this_, Link thought menacingly), he marched straight into the Royal Palace of Hyrule.

The grand door to the throne room flew open with a bang and Link stormed inside, his face dark with anger. Princess Zelda was sitting on the throne in her usual white and lilac dress reading through an official looking piece of parchment. She looked up to see Link storming towards her. "Oh! Hello Link," she said in mock surprise. "What brings you here?"

"Will you stop that!" Link retorted. "You know exactly why I'm here!"

Navi fluttered out from under Links hat and attempted to fly over to the princess. But before she could get away, Link snatched her out of midair and unceremoniously stuffed her into a belt pouch, which he closed tightly.

"Let me out!" she yelled.

"Not a chance, you little traitor," Link hissed back.

"My my, Link. You do seem testy today," she got up from her throne and walked over to him. "Don't you want me to give you kiss?" She leaned forward, closing her eyes and pursing her lips. Link took several hasty steps backwards.

"No, I don't," he said. "And get to the damn point, already. I haven't got all day."

"Well, seeing as you're going to be my bodyguard, I think you should start right now." she giggled and moved in for another attempt to kiss Link, who avoided her just in time.

"What the hell is wrong with you? You're acting like a teenager here!"

"Aw," she stuck out her lower lip in a mock pout. "Is there something wrong with that?"

"Hell, yeah there's something wrong with that! And what do you need me for? You got these guys here, don't you," he waved his arms around, indicating the many guard situated along the walls.

"Granted, they're bloody cowards, but I don't think someone's going to be kidnapping you tonight. I'm leaving."

He did just that, ignoring Zelda altogether. She had abandoned her girlish behavior and started screaming like a banshee at her soon-to-be bodyguard.

"Link? Link! Stop right there! You can't do this!"

"Watch me!" he yelled without turning around.

"Link! I'm not done with you! LINK!!!"

_The Six Sages_ looked slightly less welcoming when Link finally arrived there, but that was just the reflection of Link's own state of mind. He went over to the bar, ordered a tankard of mead and sat down in a corner, staring into space. He didn't know how long he had been sitting there, motionless, when he heard a voice.

"You usually never drink alone. What's wrong?" it said.

Link looked up into Malon's deep blue eyes. Her plain white dress and brown boots were smudged with dirt, but that did not distract from the boundless beauty of her face, which came across even better than before because she had gotten into the habit of wearing her fiery red hair in a ponytail. Her eyes, however, which usually shone with the light of constant joy, were darkened by a worried expression.

"Nothing," Link mumbled.

"Then why are you sulking?" She sat down opposite him, her eyes fixed upon his face After a moment's silence and another large gulp of mead Link sighed deeply and told Malon everything about his day, beginning with the King's visit in the Forest. When he got to the part about going up to the castle, Malon interrupted him. "You actually went to her?" she asked.

"It's not like I had a choice," Link noticed his voice rising, but he couldn't stop himself anymore. "She forced me with this decree thing. I had to go. Besides, the whole thing was a bleeding farce! She even tried to kiss..."

"I knew it!" shouted Malon. "I knew you still had feelings for her!"

The whole taproom had gone silent, but Malon continued her rant. She told him, at quite some length, that she was very upset about what he had done, that he was insensitive, cruel and even heartless to causing her so much pain. Then she resorted to name calling. All the while Link listened patiently, until she started using more colorful terms. That's when he decided that it was best to intervene. He got to his feet, pulled Malon towards him and kissed her firmly on the mouth. When he finally released her, she tried to slap him, but he just grabbed her hand and put around her ring finger the golden band he had bought earlier. Malon stared perplexedly at the shimmering emerald. All of a sudden her attitude changed and she threw her arms around Link's neck. "Yes!" she whispered into Link's ear as the spectators cheered for the newly betrothed couple.

But not everyone was content. A small, feeble, muffled voice which came from Link's waist said: "Are you gonna let me out now?"

* * *

A/N: Well, so much for the new first chapter. I dind't change all that much in this one, mostly because it was the best of the old lot. I would appreciate any reviews, as long as they aren't insulting. Constructive criticism is always appreciated.


	3. Chapter 2: Problems and Departure

Disclaimer: "The Legend Of Zelda" names, characters, places, etc. (C) by Nintendo.

Chapter 2: Problems and Departures

The day dawned bright and the sun shone warmly upon Link's face as he lay in bed beside the woman he loved. Malon was still fast asleep and Link did his best not to wake her as he tried to get out of bed, albeit without much success.

"What time is it?" Malon mumbled.

"Dawn," Link said. "You can go back to sleep."

Malon shook her head and stretched out her arms towards the Hero of Time. He looked upon her unclothed body, her immaculate curves glistening with the sweat of the night before. _She is the most beautiful creature in all of Hyrule and beyond, _Link thought. A smile escaped his lips which the farmer's daughter fondly returned.

"Give me a kiss," she said. Link obeyed and lingered, savoring every moment of this infinite joy of togetherness.

"So tell me," Malon said in a somewhat seductive tone. "What exactly were you doing at the palace last night? You weren't fooling around with Princess Zelda, were you?"

"Since I know you'd tear off my head if I said yes, I better tell you the truth." Link teased her. He told her how the King had come to the Forest and hired him as an escort for Princess Zelda on her diplomatic journey to the lands to the west of the Gerudo Desert, a country known as Rhunia.

"I see," Malon said. She turned away from Link to stare at the ceiling, her bare breasts rising and falling as she breathed.

"But for this job alone I get payed one hundred thousand rupees, Malon. It'll be enough to afford us anything we want. Our own house by the lake, perhaps."

"What have you got against the ranch?" Malon asked indignatly.

"Nothing," Link replied defensively. Then he shot her a sly grin. "I'm worried about the horses, that's all."

"What about them?" Malon asked.

"Well, after they've heard you sing for so long, it's only a matter of time until they go stark raving mad."

He quickly ducked the pillow she threw at him, but was too slow for her second "attack", with which she flung herself at him. The two of them toppled out of bed and Malon landed on top of Link.

"What was that about my singing?" she asked in a playfully threatening tone.

"You sing wonderfully, my love." Link kissed her before gently pushing her off him in an attempt to get dressed.

"Not so fast, my hero," she laughed and lunged at him yet again. Link began laughing as well and he was just about to repeat his adventure from last night, when a muffled voice interrupted him.

"For the Love of the Deku Tree! Some fairies are trying to sleep here!"

Link and Malon looked at each other and suddenly burst out laughing yet again. Link slid over to his heap of clothes and pulled out the leather pouch which still held Navi prisoner.

"I'm sorry, my little Sugarplum," Link said as he undid the knot. He turned the pouch upside down and the little blue sprite fell with a soft thud onto his palm.

"Do that again and I'll sugarplum your sorry ass." grumbled Navi.

"Aww, he didn't mean to upset you, Navi," Malon said.

"'Upset' isn't quite the word I'd choose in a situation like this... You know, you should try to be a lot quieter when you're having fun like that in a public inn."

Link coughed uncomfortably and Malon blushed furiously.

Sure enough, when they both had gotten dressed and went down into the tavern, the patrons that had spent the night at the inn and the barmaid serving them breakfast were grinning broadly when they saw the soon-to-be-married couple.

"I gotta go," Link whispered. "I have to spend the day at the palace. The Princess and I will leave tomorrow morning."

"promise me you'll come by the ranch before you leave?" Malon asked.

"I promise," he said earnestly and kissed her goodbye.

Borgor was already hammering away in his smithy when Link stepped into his workshop. The big Goron grinned an grabbed a long item wrapped in cloth from a stand in the corner. Borgor immediately began to explain the exact process of how he forged the blade, trailing off from the topic every now and then, so that Link had to force him back on track.

"...This is my finest work yet, Brother Link," he said. "Made from Death Mountain Mithril of the best quality. We found a gigantic vein of silver in Dodongo's Cavern. And all thanks to you. If you hadn't taken care of the dodongos back then, we would have starved to death. Speaking of starving, I could use a bite to eat about now... "

"I'm sure you do," Link said quickly, holding out his hands in anticipation of the elongated bundle the Goron was holding. He had endured the mountain-dweller's inane chatter for the last fifteen minutes, and frankly, was getting tired of it.

"So, if you don't mind," he continued. "I'll just take my sword, give you your money and you can go have your breakfast.

"What? Oh, yeah! Here," Borgor handed over the parcel, which Link carefully unwrapped to reveal a weapon so magnificently crafted that it could not have been done by the rough hands of a Goron. The hilt was simple enough and when put in a scabbard, wouldn't look much different from the swords the royal guards carried, but it was noticeably longer. The blade was also a wholly different matter. Running along from the cross-guard to the point, were imprints that uncannily resembled the leaves of the Deku Tree.

"What did you do with the blade?" Link asked.

"Nothing," Borgor answered in all earnest. "After I had cooled it I spent about two hours checking to see if there was any fault in the blade, but I found nothing. But the hilt _was_ my idea. You see, I made it a bit longer so you could use it with either one or both hands, depending on how you like it better."

"I see," Link said dubiously, but quickly changed the subject. "How much do you want for it?"

"I couldn't accept any money from you, Brother Link. Just tell everyone who asks, assuming you haven't run them through, where you got it from, okay?"

"But I have to give you something," Link protested. "Even Medigoron charged me for that hunk of junk he called a knife." He pulled out his wallet, but the Goron pushed it back.

"Aye, and that's why you won't have to pay anything here. Just tell anyone who asks where you got it. Then every swordsman will be coming here to buy a work of art such as yours. And soon I'll be swimming in Rupees!"

"All right then, Borgor. You have my word."

In the Castle, Link was trying to convince the King that it would be best if he and the Princess traveled alone. He was sitting in Daphnes' private study on a very comfortable ebony chair with red velvet cushioning. Across from him, behind a large ivory desk sat the Hyrulian ruler with his fingertips held against each other, listening intently to the green youngsters words.

"An entire company of soldiers is sure to draw much more attention than two simple travellers, your Majesty. As far as I know, Rhunia and Hyrule have practically ignored each other for several hundred years and sending along so many armed men may be interpreted in the wrong way."

The King scratched his chin, which was completely hidden by his regal beard.

"I understand your concerns, Sir Link," the King finally said. "It shall be as you wish."

"One more thing," Link amended. "In the unlikely event that something should befall me, I want the remaining payment to be handed over to my betrothed, Malon Lonlon."

He looked resolutely at the King who gave him an icy stare.

After about a minute of silence, the king agreed.

"If that is all, Your Majesty, I would ask permission to use the facilities of the palace."

"Yes, of course. You will be staying in the same quarters as usual. Good day, Sir Link."

"As to you, Your Majesty."

Link stepped outside and walked through the marble halls on a marine-blue carpet towards the place he sought. It was not really because he _wanted _to be there, but it was the place he would most likely not come into close contact with the princess.

He opened a door, stepped out onto a balcony overlooking the training grounds. This part of the palace was more utilitarian than for show and thus was not as splendid as the rest of the palace. The walls were plain rock and the ground, which was separated by poles and rope to form individual areas for the soldiers to spar, was dirt strewn with sawdust. Link looked around at the various occupants, each training with a wooden replica of their weapon of choice. One fighter at the far end of the field, with long blond hair tied in a ponytail and wearing a white riding hose, knee high black leather boots and a forest green tunic much like Link's own, particularly caught his eye and he squinted slightly to better recognize the person in question. When he saw her face, he groaned in exasperation.

In the center of one of the sparing rings stood Zelda, brandishing an elegant looking rapier against a man who looked like the arms master, an old and vicious looking brute with scars all over his face wearing a soldiers uniform and wielding a broadsword. In Link's opinion, he was the only real soldier in the entire country, except for the Gerudos.

Link walked along the balcony to a flight of stairs and down onto the field itself. Zelda now stood between him, her back towards him, and a wooden gate: The gate to the royal stables. A mischievous grin spread across his face. He put two fingers to his lips and whistled a loud and carrying tune. The melody was one his future wife had taught him nearly seven years ago.

As he played, Zelda turned to face him, a puzzled look on her face. Then, her confusion changed into shocked disbelief as she slowly turned to look at the stable doors. In precisely that moment, the door burst open and in stormed a lightning bolt of maroon color. It leaped over the princess, who let out a shriek of fright and dropped to cower from the charging mare. Link's longtime companion, Epona, came to a dead stop right in front of her friend.

"Easy, girl," he crooned in her ear, patting her neck and giving her a carrot stick he had in his pocket.

"What in the name of the Mighty Three was that all about," shouted a more than irritated Zelda.

Link looked at her innocently and bowed with mock respect.

"I apologize on Epona's behalf, Your Highness. It has been some time since I have had the chance to ride her out."

"Whatever. Just keep that hack away from me."

Epona's nostrils flared. She positively _hated _being called things like 'hack' or 'mule'.

"Easy, girl," Link repeated. "she's just grumpy, that's all."

he saddled up and rode to where the range for horseback archery was located, ignoring Zelda's protests for calling her grumpy. On the way he grabbed a bow and a quiver full of arrows from next to a guard who was taking a midday nap.

"I'm sure you don't mind," Link said. The snoozing soldier snored loudly and continued his beauty sleep.

"I didn't think you would."

"Link," Navi said reproachfully.

"What? He can get another one at the armory."

"Whatever. But you know how I feel about your style of riding. It makes me sick."

"Well, go sit on a fence post somewhere."

"I think I will."

Navi fluttered off.

At the range, Link could feel Epona's muscles tense, eager to run again for the first time in an entire week. He felt his own heart pound, blood rushing into every last tip of his body, carrying anticipation upon it's crimson current. He bent down and whispered in Epona's ear: "Are you ready?"

His mare snorted and dug at the earth with her front hooves.

"All right then,"

Link straightened up and took in a deep breath. With a loud resounding yell he thrust his heels into Epona's sides and the graceful mare charged forward with an ear splitting whinny.

It was an exhilarating feeling. The wind rushing through his hair and the thunder of the hooves upon the earthen ground. Link drew arrow upon arrow and shot at the targets with much speed and accuracy. Hours passed unnoticed and when Link was able to perceive his surroundings after the hypnotic daze of his workout he found it was almost sundown.

All the while Navi had been watching him, a bored expression on her face. When she heard steps behind her, she hurried to hide, fearful that it would be a soldier. The last time she had a close encounter with one of them it took her two days to straighten out her wings completely. But when she peeked out form her hiding spot she saw Zelda smiling at her.

"Hi," the princess of Hyrule said brightly.

"Hi," Navi replied and fluttered back onto the post.

Zelda looked it out at Link who had just dismounted and was talking softly to Epona.

"You miss him, don't you?" Navi asked bluntly.

"What?" Zelda asked, looking down at the little fairy. Navi just gazed at her pointedly.

"No, not in the slightest," Zelda answered to the question.

Navi gave her an '_oh really?' _sort of look.

"Don't give me that. I have nothing more to say to that brute."

"Nothing more to say to what brute?" Link asked as he approached the other two. He examined her closely, taking in every detail and resting his eyes finally upon her blade.

"Can you handle that thing?" he asked, pointing at the rapier. Of course she could. He had seen her.

"Why? Are you challenging me?" Zelda asked.

"I wouldn't dream of challenging you, Your Highness. I might hurt you."

At that Zelda drew her sword which made a steely and angry hiss. Link also drew the blade he had received from Borgor earlier that day. Zelda eyed Link's new weapon with contempt.

"your sword-smith must either be a sham or a beginner. The hilt is too long and the blade looks wrinkly."

Link grinned.

"It was designed that way. You can either use both hands..." he gripped the sword in said manner and took a swipe at the princess, which she dodged with ease. "...or with only one!" he let go with one hand and forced it to quickly change direction, so that Zelda had no choice but to parry. When the steel of the rapier met the modified silver of the long-hilted sword, it did not produce the usual loud clang, but a much softer ringing sound and an echo that reminded of the rustling of leaves. They both slowly exchanged blows which the other dodged or parried, testing out their opponents abilities, as was customary in such duels.

"Quaint," Link said after a while. "Why don't we raise it up a notch?"

With that he lunged at Zelda with full force thrusting and swinging his sword at her. All the bitterness that had welled up inside him over the years were finally boiling over. He fell to one knee and brought the blade of his sword straight upwards in a jumping motion and swung it sideways twice from left to right and back again. All this was in preparation for this deadliest attack: the Magical Kaiten-Giri. It was impossible to block without either losing one's weapon or being split in half and Zelda knew that. When Link unleashed the Dread Whirlwind she jumped backwards in a back flip. Link came out of the attack, ready for another blow, only to find the tip of Zelda's rapier to be barely touching his throat. Zelda glared at him with all the rage in the world for what seemed like an eternity. Then that gaze went from hatred to disbelief to utter horror at what had almost happened. Link realized the same thing. They had been playing with each other's lives as if they were nothing. Link took a step backwards and quickly sheathed his sword. Zelda did the same.

"Zelda, I..." Link began, but she merely put up a hand and looked away.

"It's my fault as well. No need to apologize."

Link quickly grabbed Epona's reins and motioned to Navi to follow, leaving Zelda alone.

In the stables, Link led Epona into a stall and began brushing her down after removing the riding gear from her. Neither spoke for a while until Navi said "That was reckless, Link."

"I know," he replied. "I couldn't help myself. It just happened."

"Why can't you two just..." Navi began, but Link placed a finger on her lips to silence her. Actually his finger covered her whole face and was perhaps a little to forceful, as she fell over backwards from her sitting position on the brown mare's back.

"Sorry," Link muttered and helped her back up. "But, please. I'm not really in the mood to talk about that."

Navi rolled her eyes and sighed, but nodded all the same, mumbling to herself.

After some time, a page approached Link with a frightful expression. Navi quickly fled out of sight.

"Um... Sir Link?" the boy asked apprehensively.

"Yes?" Link replied.

"The King wishes to see you."

The young boy seemed to cringe away from him, as if terrified that the young man would hurt him. Link raised an eyebrow and finally said. "All right. Lead the way."

The boy was clearly relieved.

"We cannot believe that this atrocity has occurred within these very walls!"

King Daphnes said hotly as he paced back and forth behind his desk. Link and Zelda, who were both seated, looked at each other from the corners of their eyes. When the king began using the royal '_we'_ it was decidedly not a good sign.

"But father," Zelda piped up. "We were only sparring."

"We have more than a dozen eyewitness accounts that it was more than just _'sparring' _as you so mildly put it, Zelda Luna Temagi Hyrule!" Zelda swallowed. Him using her full name was also not a good sign.

"And as for you, _Sir_ Link of the Forlorn Forest... Might I remind you that it is your duty to _protect_ my daughter and _not kill_ _her_?"

"I just..." Link wanted desperately to say something, but the raging ruler of Hyrule cut across him. "We do not care what either of you has to say in this matter! What you have done was irresponsible and childish and will under no circumstances ever again take place! _HAVE WE MADE OURSELVES ABUNDENTLY CLEAR?!?_"

"Yes, sir." Link and Zelda said in unison, looking at the floor in shame.

The king took a deep breath and finally sat down in his seat.

"Very well then. I will have you both confined to your quarters for the rest of the night. Rest well, for you have an arduous journey before you. Sir Melcom!"

The door opened and in stepped a member of the King's Own, an elite troop of fighters assigned to the personal protection of the Ruler of Hyrule. These soldiers were not dressed in the standard bluish uniform, but dressed rather in a red regalia with the Hyrulian royal crest emblazoned in golden thread upon a black tabard they wore over it.

"Yes, Your Majesty?" the guard named Melcom asked.

"Please escort Sir Link and my Daughter to their rooms." the Kin ordered.

"As Your Majesty commands."

He beckoned the two youngsters to follow him.

After they had closed the door to the king's study, Link and Zelda began to argue in hushed voices.

"I could have beat you" Link said.

"Oh, really?" Zelda replied sarcastically.

"Yeah, really. You may have some skill, I'll admit that, but I'm still the better fighter."

"And how did you arrive at that conclusion?"

"More experience with the blade."

"Oh, yeah? Well in the past seven years I have had about fourteen years of training."

"Did you forget about Termina? Not only did I have the same fourteen years you did, I also had to go through the same three days over a hundred times. That gives me about an extra year, doesn't it?"

"That doesn't count!" Zelda said indignantly.

"Yeah, it does," replied Link.

"Does not."

"Does too."

"Well, I've had training in two different types of combat. The Sheikan Hidden Arts and the Hyrulain Dueling Style."

"Your room, Sir Link." Melcom interrupted their bickering, which had steadily increased in volume. Link nodded and stepped inside, but as he moved to close the door, he turned back and saw Zelda sticking her tongue out at him.

Link's rooms were much too fancy for his taste. A carpet of different shades of red covered the floor, except for a small space in front of a large fireplace in which a comfortable fire was crackling away. In front of it stood matching set of furniture, a table and two armchairs covered in red velvet. The bed, which stood opposite to a front of windows that reached all of twenty feet to the ceiling of the room, was a gigantic fourposter with curtains of white silk one could draw back.

Link looked around with distaste and for a while did not notice the faint tapping sound that came from outside.

When he finally did notice, he looked around for it's source and eventually spotted an orb of bluish-white light hovering outside one of the windows.

Link hurried to open it for Navi, who fluttered inside, her nose held high in the air.

"What's with you?" Link asked his longtime companion.

"Did you apologize to Zelda?" she asked haughtily.

Link scratched his cheek and said: "Not as such, no..."

"Then I'm not talking to you."

Link sighed and sat down on the bed. After a moment, he yawned deeply and, after taking off his boots and tunic, slipped under the covers.

**********

_Link stood in Zelda's garden, listening to the soft rustle of the wind and Zelda singing her favorite song. She seemed to come out of nowhere and took Link by the hand._

"_Come on!" she laughed. And the two of them ran across the fields of Hyrule towards the Lake Hylia. Halfway there, Zelda stopped and looked at the Hero of Time._

"_Dance with me," she said in a dreamy voice. Link really wanted to, but remembered that he was a promised man._

"_I can't," he said. "I'm getting married to Malon."_

"_Just one dance," Zelda pleaded, but Link did not heed her call. Instead he desired to pay a visit to his betrothed. To prepare for that he looked at himself in a nearby vanity mirror which leaned against a boulder. But in it he did not see his own reflections, but rather shadows flitting in and out of the frame. His curiosity piqued, he moved closer to investigate. As he drew nearer one of the shadows, mimicking his own movements, came into sharper relief. But when he looked at the face on the other side of the glass, he saw something he had not expected. The fiery red hair and sickly greenish skin were the same, but the once so malevolent eyes were sunken and fearful and the mouth which had always grinned so viciously now trembled as if on the verge of tears._

"_Help me" Ganondorf whispered before vanishing in a wisp of darkness, only to be replaced by Link's own image. This image, however, did not copy link's movements, but instead leaned forward out of the looking glass. The mirror Link opened his mouth and whispered: "I have returned, brother..."_

**********

Link woke with a start. He had had nightmares before, but never this intense. He shook his head and closed his eyes again, this time falling into a dreamless sleep.

He was roused again several hours later by soft incoherent murmuring. He opened his eyes yet again and had to cross them to properly see what, or rather who, had clung herself to the tip of his nose. Navi was snoring slightly and talking in her sleep. Link softly blew air at her and she blinked drowsily at him.

"Rise and shine, my little sugarplum."

"Oh, shut up," she mumbled. Navi was not a morning person and particularly hated cheeriness at that time of day. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and stretched with a comparably loud yawn.

"Come on," said Link. "We need to hurry. Her Highness is probably already waiting for us."

Sure enough, the princess was already mounted and ready for departure when Link joined her at the gate to the castle grounds. For the journey, she had donned a simple traveling gown of white and blue wool and wore her hair in a peasant braid. The only thing that gave her away as a member of the Royal family was a small pendant bearing the Hyrulian Royal Family's crest: The Triforce.

"Why are you traveling like that?" Link asked curiously. "What happened to Sheik?"

Zelda straightened in her saddle and put on a haughty expression.

"Shiek was from a different lifetime."

Epona became suddenly uneasy, shying away from Zelda's horse, a tall black stallion who answered to the Name of Rythos. It had an uncanny resemblance to Ganondorf's steed back during the Incident, but it's eyes were a natural brown rather than blood red. Rythos was fully aware of the apprehension he caused in Epona and towered himself up, which made Zelda slip slightly in the saddle. She bent down to speak some sharp commands in her stallion's ear, but whether it was to reprimand him for making her slip or intimidating Epona, Link could not discern.

"Are we ready, Your Highness?" Link asked. He patted his mare on the neck to calm her down and saddled up himself.

"Indeed we are, Sir Link." said Zelda. She nudged Rythos to move forward and Link followed her.

The sun was just rising and the town was just beginning to rise from it's slumber. The few people whom Link and Zelda encountered in the streets stopped to stare at their Princess and National Hero riding side by side in simple traveling clothes. Not that they took much notice of it.

The Guards at the gate hat just completed lowering the gate for the day and gave Zelda a respectful salute as she rode by.

"I have a request to make, Your Highness," Link said after they had gone out of earshot from the guards. He had come to the conclusion that being civil towards Zelda was the easiest way to making the journey as painless as possible.

"Yes?" Zelda asked.

"If Your Highness will permit it, I would like to make a small detour to the Lonlon Ranch. I have made a promise to my betrothed that I would say farewell on the day of our departure from Hyrule."

Zelda gave him a strange sort of look, but eventually nodded and steered Rythos towards Malon's home.

It was almost noon when they reached the edge of the ranch. Already from afar Link could see Malon waiting for him with a bundle in her hands. He nudged Epona to speed up a little and dismounted next to the woman he loved. Zelda watched from a slight distance, not wanting to look Malon in the eye.

The couple exchanged no words only a long sad gaze full of goodbyes. Malon handed Link the bundle she was holding, who placed it gently on the ground and drew her into a loving kiss. Zelda turned her head and closed her eyes and did not look again until she heard hooves pattering towards her.

"Have you concluded your farewells, Sir Link?" Zelda asked.

"Indeed, I have, Your Highness. Let us continue to the Gerudo Fortress." he rode towards the west.

"Navi," he said calmly after a while.

"Yeah?" the little fairy replied, sticking her head out from Link's cap, right where his hair parted.

"I want you to stay with Malon."

"_What?!?!_" Navi shouted and toppled out of Link's hair and onto the pommel of the saddle.

"This is important to me, Navi," Link said seriously. "Malon is bound to get lonely, so I want you to keep her company."

"But what ybout you and Zelda?"

"I promise you, we won't tear each other's head off. Please, Navi. For me."

"Oh, all right," Navi coincided. "But you better come back to me alive, or I swear by the Deku Tree Sapling that I will personally kill you, understood?"

"Yes, ma'am," Link laughed and Navi flew off without another word.

* * *

A/N: Here it is, chapter 2. This is basically where the changes really start to take effect. THose who have read (and remember) my first draft will notice what I have changed. So go ahead and review it, I llok forward to your input.


	4. Chapter 3: Mixed Feelings

Disclaimer: "The Legend Of Zelda" names, characters, places, etc. (C) by Nintendo. Original names, characters, places, etc. (C) by me.

Chapter 3: Mixed Feelings

Throughout the journey towards the Gerudolands Link and Zelda remained silent. Once in a while Link thought the Princess was trying to make eye contact with him, but every time he looked her she quickly averted her gaze to the road ahead. Not that that bothered him much. He was not really in a mood for conversation and actually felt quite content with Zelda being quiet for a change. It left him free to think about other things: How his wedding would be like, how much he already missed Malon, how they first met... Link's mind slowly wandered off into the fading depths of his oldest memories, calling forth a cascade of images he had hoped would never come back to the surface.

**********

"_Link! Wait!" -......- "You were right, you know. A Hero shouldn't be distracted_ _like that." -......- "Just leave me be you insensitive, primitive, boneheaded excuse for a man!" -......- "Link! Link! LINK!!!" -......_

**********ma

"Link... Link!" Zelda called annoyed. "Were you even listening to me?"

Link shook his head and forced himself to return to the present. He looked at Zelda a little confused.

"I'm sorry, but did Your Highness say something?"

Zelda let out a growl of annoyance. She pointed towards the rocky area dead ahead which marked the beginning of Gerudo territory. Link had to do a double take. Had he lost track of the time that bad? He shook his head and nudged Epona forward, catching up with the princess. The sun had already begun to set and her orange light cast eerie shadows on the stones and boulders that flanked their path.

"I said that Nabooru is already waiting for us and you'd best behave yourself. Even with the non-aggression treaty our relationship with the dessert people is tense, to say the least. Both sides are taking a huge step here, with the Gerudos accommodating a member of the Hyrulian royal family. Even more so, because they are granting us safe passage across the desert."

"As my Princess commands," Link said half mockingly, bowing deep in his saddle.

"But aren't you and Nabooru both Sages?" he added, a little confused.

"I mean, if the two of you have that deep spiritual connection, then why deal with all this political stuff?"

"Use your brain, Blockhead!" Zelda spat, completely out of character.

"Hylians and Gerudos have been enemies for the last couple of centuries. People would get suspicious if we go from foe to best friend to quickly. Just do as I say and keep your long nose out of other people's business."

As they crossed the Gerudo Canyon Bridge, Link let his gaze wander from the waterfall on his right to the swiftly rushing rapids which led all the way to Lake Hylia. He knew it would be the last time he would see that amount of water in one spot. He took in a deep breath, savoring the sweet smell of the life-giving fluid one last time until he noticed something swimming in the waters. _No_, Link thought. _Someone!_ Someone who seemed human enough, but had odd flipper like appendages on arms and legs. Someone who was unmistakably...

"Ruto!" Link called down into the gigantic crevice. He raised a hand to wave, but the Zora princess merely turned and swam downstream, away from Link. He sighed heavily and continued on towards the fortress where he would spend the night.

_Why is it that I always make women mad at me one way or another? _He thought grumpily. _Except maybe Saria, but we're friends, nothing more._ _Malon is the woman I love, so I can't tell her about my little 'affair'. Ruto hasn't spoken to me since that discussion I had with her about me not being able to marry her. I'm not a member of any royal family, so it just wouldn't be proper. Zelda... _He broke off his train of thought abruptly, forcing himself not to think about it.

"Keep your mind in the now," Link said to himself and rode on.

Matriarch Nabooru was already waiting for them at the entrance to Fort Gerudo, flanked by two of her warrior maidens, each of them carrying a large halberd.

"Welcome, Princess Zelda. We are honored to have a guest such as yourself within these humble walls. May this, our gesture of hospitality, be yet another step towards mutual trust amongst our peoples."

"Well said, Revered Mother," Zelda replied courteously, using the new mode of address for the Gerudo leader. She dismounted from her stallion and handing the reins to Link.

Nabooru scratched the back of her head and grinned sheepishly. "You think so? It took me two weeks to string those few words together and another four days to learn them by heart."

Zelda actually laughed.

"Please," Nabooru continued. "One of my girls will show you to your room. I have to see to dinner. Would you like to join me?"

Zelda nodded in polite thanks. "I would be honored."

She followed the Gerudo who was to lead her to her rooms, while the Matriarch moved over to Link and whispered in his ear: "We need to talk."

With a curious blink, Link followed her through a side gate and into the stables.

"What is it, Nabooru?" he asked once they were alone.

"There's something I need to tell you that Zelda and the other sages have been keeping from you for quite some time now. The mission you are on is not diplomacy, it's espionage."

"Huh?"

"We have been sensing a powerful dark aura emitting from Rhunia over the last couple of years. So powerful, in fact, that it makes Ganon look like an innocent little schoolgirl."

Link let out a low whistle. "So what's my part in all of this?"

"Rauru's cryptic on that matter, as usual. But from what I understood, you're the one who has to bring balance to the Triforce. Again."

Link snorted and led Epona into a free stall where he began tending to her tack.

"More hero business? Great. Just what I need. This bodyguard job was supposed to be my last before settling down with Malon."

Nabooru smiled. "You'll make a fine husband, Link. I'm sure of it."

"Thanks," Link said bitterly. "But that won't really help in this situation, will it?"

"You'd be surprised," Nabooru said mysteriously. She gave Link a hearty pat on the arm and left him alone.

"What should I do, Epona?" Link asked his mare. He let himself fall backwards slightly and slid down the wall. Epona nudged him gently as if telling him to cheer up. She had been his most trusted companion in most of his adventures. Their bond was so strong, in fact, that Link felt he could actually _talk _to her.

"Every woman I somehow get involved with ends up mad at me."

Epona turned her head to give Link a hard stare as if to say that it was Link's own fault.

"How? I can understand Zelda's behavior, to some extent, but Ruto? She should understand that it would be more than improper for us to get married. Besides I love Malon."

Epona emitted a series of snorts and whinnies.

"Watch your tongue, Missy!" Link snapped, raising a warning finger which he pulled back just in time before Epona could bite it off. "I don't want to hear another word about that, understood?"

Epona stared at him for a while, then nudged her friend slightly, a compassionate whine blowing softly into his ear. Link gently stroked her muzzle.

"Thanks, Epona," he said. "I think I might just do that." He got up to leave the stables, wished his mount a good night and made his way towards the fort.

He went into the mess hall, remembering it's location from his last visit. Once he got there he noted the usual goings-on one could observe in a military mess hall: Singing, drinking, and raucous laughter. He let his vision dart from one face to the next thinking: _why is it that all Gerudo warriors look practically identical?_

He spotted Zelda sitting next to Nabooru at one table in the middle of the room and made his way toward them. The Princess, it seemed, was having a wonderful time listening to stories about Link Nabooru had to tell.

"Why hello, Sir Link!" Zelda said jovially. "Nabooru was just telling me about your little adventures in the Fort. You never told me that you let yourself get caught during your little stint here,"

"I lost to the better opponent. No shame in that. Besides, it's not like you've ever been in a real fight, right?"

"Well, I..." Zelda began, but Nabooru cut across her.

"How about a game?" she asked , jumping to her feet.

"A game?" Link and Zelda repeated in unison.

"Yeah, a game. It's quite fun, too." She grabbed several bottles from other tables with colors varying from a venomous looking green to a soft, warm ember. Then she pulled out a deck of cards from her pocket and placed a singe but fairly large glass in the middle between the three of them, among the bottles.

"Okay, the rules are simple. Each of us draws a card. Every time someone draws a King she or he gets to pour a bit of drink in to the glass. The person who draws the last King has to drink it."

Link stared at her open mouthed and completely aghast.

"You can't be serious," he asked her.

"Yeah, I am." Nabooru replied and began shuffling the cards.

"Oh, don't be such a baby, Link," Zelda said.

_Just how naïve is that girl? _He thought._ Does she think that's Pomegranate juice?_

As it transpired, Zelda was the one to draw the fourth and last King of the Deck. The liquid in the glass now looked like someone had urinated in stagnant water. It also smelled like that.

"Go ahead, Your Highness, drink up," Nabooru said, handing the glass to Zelda. For a while she looked at it in disgust, then squared her shoulders and downed the entire content in one swallow. _Big mistake_, Link thought.

Zelda immediately began coughing her lungs out. Nabooru laughed heartily.

"You'll feel better after another round, Princess," she said shuffling the cards again.

It was quite obvious that Zelda had no experience what so ever when it came to playing cards (although in this case, it just came down to _really_ bad luck), let alone strong drink. After only a few more games she was swaying violently in her seat.

"Listen here, mishter I-wanna-get-married-to-some-cowgirl-strumpet," she said after losing her seventh round in a row. "I don't care _what_ it is you see in her, she'll all... *hic*... ways be nuthin' more'n a peasant girl."

"Zelda, you are most definitely drunk." Link noted calmly. Even though he had also had a few drinks, he was still quite in control of himself.

"What I want you to know, _Link_," Zelda put an odd emphasis on his name, "Is that I... that I..." she fell forward onto the table, not moving. Link jumped to his feet, worried that something serious had happened. But when the Princess began snoring so loud that the amazons at the other tables started staring, pointing and even laughing he simply put his hands to his head and rubbed his temples.

"I better get her to bed," he said in a strained voice.

Nabooru got up as well. "Meh, just leave her there. My girls will bing her to her room soon enough. Come on, let's go for a walk."

----------

"You are a very troubled man, Link," Nabooru said matter-of-factly. The night air blew cold through the mountainous enclave in which the fortress was nestled, but Link did not really care. Perhaps because of the alcohol he had drunk, or maybe he just had other things that were bothering him much more at that moment.

"No, really?" Link replied, his voice dripping with purest sarcasm. "Why on earth would you think something like that?"

Link and Nabooru were sitting on the stairs leading down towards the desert.

"For one: You have this staring-at-the-ground, hunchbacked walk. And we've already discussed some of your problems."

"Why is it that, even though saving Hyrule was literally forced upon me, I had so much less trouble coping with _that _than my own life? Things have gone stark-raving-mad around me, Nabooru. I really don't know how much more I can take!"

The two of them leaned on the fence of the mounted archery course. A cool breeze came from the west, bringing the sandy scent of desert air with it.

"Do you want to hear my opinion?" Nabooru asked.

"Does it come with advice?" Link asked.

"Will you listen to my advice if I give you any?" Nabooru asked.

Link sighed and looked up to the star-strewn sky. "Alright. Go ahead."

"I don't think that you are in control of your own life just yet. The Goddesses have chosen you to be the Hero of Time. But what they also wanted you to be is a human being. They didn't want some ice-cold person saving the world because he was destined to do so. They wanted a kind, loving, compassionate young man. You may be the Hero of Time amongst the Hylians, but you are still to be deemed worthy of that title by the Three. Perhaps your so-called 'personal problems' are nothing more than their way of testing you as a person, not as a hero."

"You know something I don't, right?"

"Well, Duh! I'm a Sage. I know many things you don't, but I can't tell you what they are. Union-rules, if you will."

Link had to smile in spite of himself.

"What was going on with Zelda back there, anyway?" he asked, his expression becoming stern again.

"I mean, you were the one who forced us to play that silly game of yours, but I would never have thought Zelda to drink herself silly so willingly."

"I think it has to do with the things that went on between the two of you. Zelda's upset and so are you. Maybe you should talk with her. And keep it calm. I don't think she can handle any more fights with you, the state she's in."

"She can handle a lot, except Desert Whiskey," Link muttered.

Nabooru laughed.

----------

Link's night was restless. He thrashed in his sleep and dreamt fragments of his past, incoherent and extremely unsettling:

**********

"_I think it's best for both of us." -...- "First you hassle me to make it public and then..." -...- "Just go, Link." -...- "Link! I'm not done with you! Come back! Link! LINK!!!"_

_**********_

Again he woke bathed in ice cold sweat and breathing heavily.

"What's going on?" he asked himself as he sat up in his bed. He looked out a small window which overlooked the fortress courtyard. A squad of Amazons was marching towards the desert gate, heeding the calls of a commanding voice, barking a marching rhythm. Rythor and Epona stood alone at the foot of the desert staircase. Link wondered where Zelda was, when he spotted her emerging from behind a corner, clutching her stomach in pain. Her complexion matched the white and lilac coloring of her traveling gown.

Link shook his head and, after he had dressed, made his way to the Princess and the horses.

"Good morning, Your Highness. I hope you have had a pleasant night."

"Oh, shut up." Zelda said weakly. Her eyes filled with terror while she pressed her lips against each other. An ugly retching sound emitted from her throat and she fell to her knees, vomiting violently on the floor. Link hastily took a few steps backwards to avoid the splashing mass. A pang of pity and affection made him sigh and go to his saddlebags, from one of which he pulled a small bottle containing a viscous red substance.

"Here, drink this," he said, unstopping the bottle and handing it to Zelda. The Princess eyed it wearily, but eventually grabbed and lifted the glass container to her trembling lips with equally shaky hands. With every gulp her skin went bit by bit from pale to the soft rosy color she usually had. "Thanks," Zelda said still a little hoarse. "What was that?"

"Red fairy draught. It was my last dose, but I'm sure I can find some more somewhere."

Zelda gave him a thankful smile and went over to Rythor to check his saddle.

Nabooru came over to them from the desert gate, bearing a traditional Gerudo halberd.

"I have put a squad of my finest Amazons at your disposal. They will escort you through the desert to the border of Rhunia. Let me introduce you to the commanding officer. Nayla!"

Link's face brightened when he heard the name. A young Gerudo woman, who was about half a foot taller than Link, came towards them and saluted Matriarch Nabooru respectfully.

"At ease, Soldier," Nabooru said with a smile. The warrior-maiden relaxed her stance.

"You remember Link, don't you, Commander?" Nabooru asked with a smile.

"Of course I do, Reverend Mother." Nayla smiled back.

"Well then, you will have plenty to catch up on. I'll leave you alone. Good travels and a safe return for you and Princess Zelda, Link."

Link and Nayla immediately began talking about what had transpired in their lives since they had last seen in each other. Nayla told him about how she had climbed up in rank from Lieutenant to Commander in only two years and was now in charge of organizing the desert patrols.

"You've come quite a way, I see," Link noted. It was then that he noticed Zelda watching the pair of them intently.

"You never met Nayla, have you, Your Majesty?" Link asked her.

"No I haven't. When did you two meet?" she replied.

"When he came back from that Termina place," Nayla supplied. "Link came by the fortress and asked Matriarch Nabooru for Sanctuary. She said yes and left him in my care. I was only a Rookie back then, so I guess she wanted to see if I could handle the responsibility. But I gotta say Link's been really pleasant to deal with throughout his whole stay. Didn't mind taking over duties either. We used to spend whole nights together on the fortress walls. Those were the days." Nayla sighed.

"Interesting," Zelda said with a hard look at Link, who returned the gaze equally.

"Come on, We better get going," Nayla said to them. "The desert waits for no one and it's going to get more than hot soon enough."

Link nodded and climbed into his Saddle.

* * *

A/N: Sorry if this is a week late, but I got caught up in something more important. I know, some of you might think "What could be more importatn than this?", but rest assured, I have just reasons. Even if I am not at liberty to discuss them at this point. Anyway, I hope you like this one. Don't forget to read an review.

Lord S.


	5. Chapter 4: Crossing Sands

Disclaimer: "The Legend of Zelda" names, characters, places, etc. (C) by Nintendo. Original names, characters, places, etc. (C) by me.

Chapter 4: Crossing Sands

"So… hot… need… water…" Zelda mumbled. It had been a week since she, Link and their entourage of Gerudo Amazons had left the fort. Link was a little more accustomed to the hazardous environment of the vast Gerudo Desert, but it was still taxing on him since he hadn't had any exposure to the intense heat in the last five years. But what was even worse was Zelda's constant complaining. Granted, she had grown up in a relatively secure environment, but he thought her training as a Sheikah would have included wildlife survival. He shook his head and kept marching. Like the Amazons, he and the Princess had donned thick wool gowns and had wrapped large cloths around their heads.

"It's to keep the heat out," Nayla had explained. "Otherwise you would lose too much water and die within a matter of hours."

Link caught up to Nayla.

"How long until we reach the border?" he asked her. "I think Her Highness is beginning to melt.

Nayla laughed. "Not too much longer. Another four days or so." She seemed tense all the same, always keeping an eye on the horizon and looking around.

"Four _days_?" Zelda asked shocked. "Din's Fire I don't think I could handle another four _hours_!"

_Not even noon and she's already complaining, _Link thought.

"Don't worry, Link" Nayla said as if she had read his thoughts. "There's an oasis about two hours from here. We'll be spending the night there."+

"Do mine ears deceive me?" Zelda asked excitedly. (_Does she eavesdrop on all my conversations with Nayla?_ Link asked himself.) "A real oasis? With an entire pool of water? I can wash?"

"Certainly Your Highness," replied the Gerudo commander. "Have patience for a little while longer and you will be able to bathe."

Zelda sighed with delight at the thought of washing the grime and sand off her body.

"It won't be permanent, Zelda," Link warned her. "We still have several days of travel ahead of us."

"You're a man, Link. You don't understand that sort of thing."

"I might, if you would be so kind and explain it."

Zelda opened her mouth to say something, but instead she blushed. "I… I can't. It's just something I have to do."

"That's fine," said Link. He was surprised at Zelda for admitting that there was something she couldn't explain.

When they finally reached the little green island on that sea of sand and heat, Link was ordered to tend to the gear while the women were allowed to freshen up, which he did without so much as a sigh, seeing as he was grossly outnumbered.

"I'm sorry about this, girl." Link said to Epona. "I wouldn't have taken you through here if there was another way to get to Rhunia."

_Its__ okay_, Epona said with a soft whinny.

"I'm sure the ladies won't mind if you go have a drink if you're thirsty."

_And leave you to roam about, without me to keep an eye on you? Not a chance._

"What? As if I would ever dare to peek on Zelda. That is just sick."

_What about the Gerudo women?_

"Yeah, right. I'd get my crown jewels cut off for even considering it."

Epona gave Link an icy stare. _I double dog dare you._

"Not. A. Chance." he said, putting an emphasis on every word.

_Oh, you're no fun, _Epona snorted and trotted off to the water hole.

Link shook his head, smiling nonetheless.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say you were talking to that horse," said a voice behind him. Link turned to look at Nayla.

"Bath-time over?" he asked his favorite Gerudo warrior.

"Meh, I bathed about a week ago. I should be fine until we get back to the fortress." She looked hard at him. "So, were you talking to your horse?"

"If you have to know, I was. Epona and I have a strong spiritual connection that helps us understand each other."

"If you say so." Nayla said shrugging. Her view wandered to the horizon. "Not good..." she mumbled.

"What? What's wrong?" Link asked looking out in the same direction. Just where the sky met the ground he could see an undulating and writhing darkness.

"That's a sand storm, and a big one at that. We're not going anywhere anymore today." She walked back to the other Gerudos to give them orders.

"Nayla, wait!" Link ran after her. "When will it... Whoa!" He quickly turned around and shut his eyes fiercely when he came in sight of the pool. He had caught a glimpse of several bare breasted Gerudo women before rushing back to where he was taking care of Epona. He heard the women laugh raucously and wondered what they were planning on doing to him.

"What's the matter Link? Didn't like what you saw?" one of the amazons called to him and more laughing erupted. Link buried his face in his hands and moaned.

The Storm hit about two hours later. Link and Zelda shared a cover with Nayla while waiting for the dusty tempest to subside.

"How long will this take?" Zelda asked.

"I don't know," replied Nayla. "An hour, a day... either way this definitely threw us way off schedule."

"Look at the bright side, Zelda, at least we can get some extra rest until we head out tomorrow." said Link, lying on the ground with his eyes closed an his hands behind his head.

"I guess," she admitted and also closed her eyes.

**********

_Link was running. Running away from an invisible enemy that was bound to catch up to him at any moment, From everywhere he could hear the hushed voices of those he cared for, hissing evilly at him: "You are not fit to become a _true_ hero!" "Last time I checked, you didn't want to get married at all. And now you're with _her_" "Why does the _hero _wish to lead the life of a common _peasant_?"_

_Link kept running.__ "Get away from me!" he yelled at the non-corporeal voices. The enemy was coming closer. "Leave me alone! I love her! Why are you doing this to me?"_

"_We do not advocate your behavior," the King's voice boomed. "You are a disgrace to the Land, the People and the Royal Family of Hyrule!"_

**********

Link woke with a start, but did not seem able to sit upright. The reason for this was made clear, when he looked at what was holding him down. Zelda had snuck in under his arm and had her head rested upon his chest. Her pale face seemed to glow in the white strip of moonlight that shone through a little crack in the canvas of the tent. She looked very peaceful and innocent as she lay there breathing regularly and seeming to smile ever so mildly. Link smiled as well and closed his eyes yet again, drifting this time into a dreamless slumber.

----------

For whatever reason it was that drove the Princess's ambitions, she had changed her outfit to compliment Link's green and white Hero's Garment. Link did not address this matter, but nonetheless took it as a sign that Zelda was beginning to accept him again.

Each day was hotter that the one before, if that was at all possible. The caravan trudged along the endless sea of dunes under the constant beating of a relentless sun. Zelda had finally given up complaining, having come to the conclusion that her bickering really was nothing more than a waste of energy, which she needed to continue forward. Link also spoke only when it was absolutely necessary. It was also becoming harder for him to discern between reality and mirages. Images flickered across his eye when his consciousness seemed to drift in and out of the now. With every step he took he wished for the cool and lush green shade of the forest, the wide windswept fields and the clear lake water, which glistened like diamonds in the noon sun. Epona was also breathing harder than usual in an effort to keep cool. Link had spared her the ordeal of having her to carry him, because she was already laden down with as much water from the oasis as she could carry. I was a trying journey on all of them, even the Gerudos, but at least they had the training not to let it show.

"It won't take much longer," Nayla said, wiping a drop of sweat from her brow. "We should make it to the border within the week. That is of course, unless another sandstorm hits. But that's more than unlikely."

"Good," Link wheezed. "I'm getting kind of tired of this desert myself."

"Less complaining, more walking," commented Zelda weakly.

_Hark who's talking!_Link thought, but kept that to himself.

The days went on and the closer Link got to the Rhunian border, the more agitated he became. But it was not because of the idea of leaving Hyrulian territory, he had done that before. No, it was something much deeper. The horizon, once a sight full of hope and anticipation, now had a foreboding air about it.

As if to confirm his sense of dread, Nayla raised an arm, signaling the party to stop.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Moblin Raiders. A whole pack of them."

"Moblins? In the Desert?"

"They first came from the desert, in case you didn't know," Nayla breathed. She lifted her nose into the air and sniffed. Then she pointed to an inconspicuous seeming mound about fifty yards away.

"I need you to shoot a frost arrow right there," she said. Link nodded and had one of the Amazons hand him a Gerudo recurve-bow. Then he placed an arrow on the sting and whispered something. Moments later, a sphere of glistening ice surrounded the tip of the arrow. He drew it back, aimed and fired. The arrow flew straight and true and hit its mark squarely. But instead of some kind of crunching sound that one would expect when steel meets sand, there was a resounding thud, closely followed by a piercing howl, which was instantly muted by the spreading of the magical glacier. Suddenly they were surrounded. Many brown skinned, man-like creatures with grotesque snouts and large tusks which made them look like unfortunately misshapen boar headed people had them completely encircled.

"Weapons at the ready!" shouted Nayla as the Moblins rushed towards them.

One of the monsters, the leader, judging by the way he wore several ornamental trinkets upon his armor, opened it's snout and grunted in a grotesque mutation of the Hyrulian language: "The Master wants the ones in Green! Kill the others!"

They wielded crude weapons ranging between clubs, iron glaives, stone axes and slings. Link drew his sword and shield, thinking that to be the better strategy against ranged attackers. He charged himself, ducking under an attack and thrusting his blade into the Monster's jaw. The beast howled in dismay, clutching it's would in pain as it fell writhing and twitching to the floor while Link cut down another foe. Their blood was so thick that it did not flow, nor was it red. Instead a viscous black fluid oozed from the gashes inflicted upon them by Link and the Gerudos. Link blocked a stone hurled at him from one of the sling-shooters. He whirled his sword around in a half circle and was promptly parried by Zelda, who had joined the fight. She shot him a quick grin, before lashing out with her own rapier to cut the throat of a Moblin to her right. The enemy gurgled as it's blood ran down it's windpipe and collapsed. Nayla let out an ear splitting battle cry as she unsheathed her two swords and simultaneously cut down three attackers. In a blinding blaze her twin scimitars glared in the desert sun, sending many a foe to the afterlife. She seemed entranced by the rush of battle, yet every stroke of her deadly curved blades had a cold precision within them. Many Moblins were moving in on Zelda, making it more and more difficult for her to move about freely and guard herself from the monsters attacks. Nayla jumped into the midst of the fray to assist the princess. She fought fiercely, but in her zeal to safeguard the heir to Hyrule's throne, she neglected her own guard and thus did not notice the one foe moving in to slay her from behind

"_NAYLA!!!"_ Link bellowed and rushed over to her, cutting down five more monsters in the process. Yet he was not fast enough. The Moblin leader bellowed in triumph as he ran Nayla through with his crude but mighty glaive, sneered at the hero's arrival and raised his weapon yet again, without bothering to remove the Gerudo Captain's already lifeless body from the shaft of his weapon first. Link was raving. His anger knew no bounds. He collected all of his will and called upon the Goddess of Power to feed his vengeance.

"_BURN! YOU BASTARD!" _He screamed. Without so much as an additional warning his blade burst into flame as he decapitated his opponent. The blood gushed as if it were an oil well. Link turned to the other Moblins and, fiery wrath burning in his eyes, advanced upon them. Shortly after, the skirmish was over.

It was gruesome. Dismembered body parts lay scattered on the sandy desert ground. The black substance stained the desert sands and made them stick to everything. Link breathed heavily, looking around wildly as if wishing for more marauders to kill. He felt a soft hand on his shoulder and whirled about to look into Zelda's azure blue eyes. Tears were welling up within them. The fire inside him seemed to slowly die down as he looked at her. He wanted to say something. Something that could properly express what he was going through, but the words would not come to him. Zelda nodded silently and pulled her champion into a tight embrace, her tears now running freely. Link also wept for the young woman.

In old Gerudo Tradition the body was cremated. Since they had no pyre to properly lay Nayla upon, Link once again called upon the fire of Din to do his bidding. The ashes were then cast into the wind, so that Nayla's spirit was free to roam the world or continue on into the afterlife, whichever it chose.

"We must press on," one of the Amazons, formerly Nayla's second in command, said softly. "The desert does not have much patience."

Link and Zelda silently agreed and they all continued their journey to the border.

----------

"Behold, the True Border of Hyrule," the Amazon exclaimed a few days later. Link stared at the gigantic crevice before him. It was much vaster than the gorge that separated the Gerudo Valley from the rest of Hyrule. There seemed to be no bridge and by the expression Link saw in Zelda's eyes he knew she was not excited about the idea of crossing that thing on foot.

"We must part ways here," the new captain continued. Zelda blanched slightly at those words, but nodded regally nonetheless.

"Both Sir Link and I thank you all for the selfless aid you have given us," Zelda bowed regally, and Link copied her move.

"We trust your journey will be safe. May the Wind of Fortune blow a soft breeze along your path. Farewell Princess." The Amazons saluted and made their way back to the desert. Link and Zelda watched after them until the Gerudos vanished behind the curb of a dune.

"We should make haste," Zelda said finally. "It is still quite a ways to the Rhunian capital and the day of our scheduled arrival draws nearer."

"As you wish, Princess," replied solemnly.

Crossing the Canyon took less time than they ha thought and by the time the sun had set they had reached the opposite end and therefore were within the borders of the Patriarchy of Rhunia. All the while nobody spoke. Then Zelda asked "Are you feeling okay?"

Link turned in his saddle to look at her. "Yeah," he replied bitterly. "I feel just peachy. Thanks for asking."

"Link!" Zelda exclaimed pulling in beside him. "Look at me. You've hardly spoken for the last few days, let alone eaten anything. If you give up now, before our mission has even really started, then Nayla's death will have been in vain. Do you want that?"

Link pulled Epona's reins and looked ashamedly to the ground. "I know. But I can't help thinking that her death was unnecessary. She didn't have to come with us. She could still be alive."

Zelda looked at Link for a while, then placed a consoling hand on his own. "Come on," she said motioning with her head to a forest not far off. "We both need some rest. I can cook something to eat if you like."

Link looked at her with an odd expression. "You can cook?" he asked incredulously.

"Yes, I can," the Princess replied calmly. "You just wait and see."

* * *

So, that's that for chapter 4! Please remember to read and review. I'm looking forward to your feedback!


	6. Chapter 5: New Worlds

* * *

Disclaimer: "The Legend of Zelda" names, characters, places, etc. (C) by Nintendo. Original names, characters, places, etc. (C) by me.

Chapter 5: New World

"We better get some rest," Zelda said. "We still have about a week of traveling ahead of us and I don't want us to arrive at the capital like a couple of vagrants."

"I'm surprised at you, Zelda," Link admitted. "I always thought that living in a palace meant never having to cook you own food."

They were sitting a little way into the forest on the Rhunian side of the canyon. Zelda was working away trying to start a Fire.

"You should be surprised, Link. Cooking isn't really part of a young princess's curriculum. I used to spend several hours of my free time in the kitchens and…"

"Zelda, Stop!" Link interjected. He couldn't explain it away, but he suddenly felt a surge of fear at the idea of sitting near a source of open flame. Zelda looked at him inquiringly, but when he did not answer she continued to work with the flint and steel.

"I said stop!" he grabbed the flint out of her hand.

"Ow!" she cried. "What in the world is wrong with you?"

"No fire, Zelda. We don't like the fire."

"'We'? Who is 'we'?

"I mean… I… What?" He closed his eyes as if trying to hear something that could not be seen.

"The forest… it's… I can't put it any other way… it's _alive_."

"What?" Zelda asked. She looked around in a panic-like state.

"No fire. The Trees won't protect us if we light one."

"What are you…"

"Just… trust me on this one, Zelda."

"But how are we supposed to eat or keep warm at night?"

Link pondered her question for a while then said "It might just work." He gathered up several stones, all of them roughly the size of his fist and placed them on a pile. Kneeling before them in a pose reminiscent of prayer he quietly spoke incoherently.

After a few seconds, the rocks began to emit a reddish glow from their center, and Zelda could feel on her face a heat emitting from them. She reached out to touch them, but Link caught her hand before she could. "They're hot," he said, without taking his eyes off them. When the red light had completely filled the rocks, a blue glowing mist began to form around them, solidifying into a tightly fitting, yet still mostly transparent hull.

Link picked one of them up and held it in his hand. Zelda gazed at his creation in awe and almost instinctively reached out for it. She drew it back and looked at Link.

"Go ahead," he said with a smile. "It won't burn you now."

Zelda gingerly took one of the glowing stones. It felt comfortingly warm in her hand and pulsated slightly, like a heartbeat.

"How did you… I thought there were only three spells."

"In essence, there are, but those were just the raw magics. I have had several years of time to refine them. Now I can make them take basically any form I want. And with these stones, We can cook out dinner and still keep the trees safe."

Link felt a presence touch his mind which had a grateful air about it and smiled, looking up into the canopies.

"What do you call them?" she asked in awe.

"I haven't given them a name yet," Link admitted. "What would you call them?"

"I… You want me to give them a name?"

"Why not? I couldn't think of anyone better."

"Wow… I'm honored." Zelda turned the stone in her hands, feeling the warm heartbeat-like pulsating in with her fingers.

"Heart-stone," Zelda said simply.

"Alright then, heart-stone it is. Why don't we make ourselves something to eat?"

Zelda agreed and began working around with the varied pots they had in their packs. Link thought that it would be best to leave her alone, since she had volunteered to cook, and decided to take a little stroll in the forest.

He felt the same presence he had twice before, more or less proving to him that the forest as a whole was sentient. It wasn't the same as the Lost Woods back home, where the Deku Tree was the paramount mind of the all things living within his territory. Here it felt like every tree, bush and other plant had its own soul, coming together into one great consciousness. With a smile he felt the welcoming thoughts he experienced as he climbed into the upper branches of a great oak. He leaned back against the trunk and pulled out the fairy-ocarina he had received as a gift many years ago. He put it to his lips to the instrument and began to play a melancholy tune in memory of Nayla. The presence felt his sadness and sent a wave of condolence and sympathy into his soul. Link continued playing his sad tune.

"Link!" came a call from the woods a few minutes later. Link stopped playing and immediately felt a small pang of disappointment as he climbed down and made his way back to the camp.

"Dinner's ready," Zelda said as Link came back into the ring of warmth which came from the heart-stones.

"What did you make?" Link asked curiously. Zelda handed him a small wooden plate with a slab of fried meat and a helping of cooked carrots and peas smothered in butter.

"How did you…" Link asked. He was surprised, as they had not brought any fresh vegetables, let alone meat.

"You're not the only one with a few magic tricks up your sleeve," she said with a mysterious little grin.

"If you say so," Link replied and began eating. The food tasted great, although he would never openly admit that to Zelda. He ate with delight as the sweet taste of the vegetables filled his mouth and the smell of the freshly fried steak rose into his nostrils.

"What do you think?" Zelda asked, her eyes wide in anticipation of Link's reply.

Link swallowed a big mouthful of peas before answering. "If it tasted inedible, I wouldn't be eating it, now would I?" he said nonchalantly and continued eating bending low over his plate so that she couldn't see the grin on his face.

Zelda picked up a pea from her own plate and threw it at him

"Ouch," he said, still chewing, as the legume hit him in the ear. "What was that for?"

"I want a straight answer, Mister Hero," Zelda said firmly, but with a twinkle of mirth in her eyes.

"Not with that tone, Miss Princess," replied Link and threw one of his own peas at her. Zelda ducked it, but then was promptly hit in the nose by a carrot Link had tossed at her. Zelda laughed and threw more vegetables at him. Link couldn't help but join in the fun. After they had finished, Link sighed. "You did well, Zelda. It tasted excellent."

"You know, I still am a little hungry." She admitted. Link scratched his cheek in thought then snapped his fingers.

"I got an idea," he finally said and went to rummage through his packs. He returned about two minutes later carrying a copper saucepan with lid and a small bag filled with what sounded like little pellets.

"What's that?" the Princess asked.

Link merely smiled and placed the pan on the heart-stones and poured the contents of the bag into it.

"I remember those," Zelda said, looking at the small, golden little seeds. "You used to shoot them with your slingshot, right?

"I'm surprised you remember, Zelda. I never really used the slingshot other than to annoy the heck out of Mido and to shoot apples of trees for Saria."

"Aww, apples for your childhood sweetheart. You're so cute sometimes."

"Oh, shut it, Zelda," Link said but smiled nonetheless. A small popping sound made Zelda jump in her seat.

"What was that?" she asked, looking around nervously.

Link laughed as Zelda jumped again following another pop. "It's just the seeds, Zelda. You see, these rock-hard seeds have a small drop of water inside them and when you heat tat up, the water turns into steam. The steam can't be confined within that small seed and has to get out somehow. It does that by breaking the outer shell and turning the whole seed inside out. What you get is a fluffy little thing that is easy to chew."

The popping grew more and more frequent and Link continued. "When there all done, you add a little salt and you've got yourself a tasty snack."

The popping subsided and Link took the pot from the fire. He added some salt and shook the whole pan to mix it up good. Afterward he lifted the lid and let Zelda smell the fragrance wafting in her direction.

"Amazing," she breathed. Link held out the pot towards her and said: "Help yourself."

Zelda took a single fluffed up seed and placed it in her mouth. Her eyes closed with delight as the salty taste of the little grain filled her mouth.

"I call them Popped Deku Seeds. The Kokiri absolutely love them."

They sat in silence for a while, munching on the seeds and gazing into the warm red glow of the heart-stones.

"Link," Zelda said finally. "Do you ever, you know… Think about us? How it could have been?"

Link looked at her. "I've had my fair share of thoughts on that subject, but I prefer the way things are right now."

Zelda looked somewhat shocked and her tone became a tad icy.

"You mean you like this dissociative relationship between the two of us?"

"Well, it's not like the whole thing was my fault," Link replied seemingly calm, but with a definite edge to his voice. "If it hadn't been for the antics of some spoiled little princess, I would never have left the palace."

"Spoiled? _Spoiled?!?_" her voice raised an octave.

"Yes, spoiled. I don't see any reason to soften my language because you can't handle the truth."

"That was totally uncalled for!"

"Well, you started it!"

What followed could only marginally be named an argument, because it quickly degraded to infantile name-calling. They shouted at each other for a goodly length of time and did not even flinch from using the most profane insults they each could muster.

"Do you have any idea what I have gone through since you left the palace?" Zelda asked on the verge of tears. "Being alone all the time, nobody to talk to, nobody with whom I could just be myself."

"You were the one who was responsible for my expulsion from the palace! You self-centered, self-pitying little _brat_!" Link yelled.

The ground lurched, leaves rustled and Link fell to a knee. He looked up into the canopies above and then back at Zelda. A dunning presence touched his mind.

"Good night," he said simply and stomped off to his packs, where he grabbed his bedroll and marched a little way into the forest.

----------

The next morning dawned cold and foggy. Link suspected that the forest had not protected them as much as it could on account of his little squabble with Zelda the night before, but it was nice to wake up from a nights rest without being woken by a nightmare in the middle of it. Obviously the Princess had also not slept well. She had rings under her eyes and spoke as if she had a severe head cold.

"Good morning, Link," she said politely but without making any eye contact.

"Good morning, Zelda," he replied equally polite. "I trust you have had a pleasant night?"

"Not really, but I'm not as spoiled as some think, so I can handle it." She was already busy packing up her things and putting them into the saddlebags on Rythor's back. Link went over to the heart-stones, which were still glowing as warmly and brightly as they had the night before. Link grumbled. He had unwillingly made the spells permanent and would have to use more of his magical energy to end the spells. He concentrated his will and released the magic from each of them, save one.

"Zelda," he said. "Could I have a word with you?"

The princess raised an eyebrow and gave Link an appraising look.

"Very well," she said haughtily. "What is it?"

"I'm sorry about last night. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that."

Zelda sighed and hugged Link. "I'm sorry, too."

"I want to give you something," he said after the princess let him go. He took her and and placed into it the very same heart-stone he had not disenchanted.

"Whenever you're alone in the cold and dark, This will always give you warmth and light."

Zelda gazed transfixed at the item, her large blue eyes reflecting the reddish glow of the magicked stone.

"I... I don't... Thank you, Link," she said simply.

They stood for a while in silence, neither wanting to disrupt this moment of blissful reconciliation. But both of them knew that the journey had to continue so they eventually finished packing up and continued east.

Along the way they had the odd polite conversation and all the while Link could feel the presence of the forest, which was quite pleased that the two of them behaved properly after their little spat from the night before. In the moments of silence Link basked in the warm sun which shone though the leaves of the trees and the soft rustling of twigs and branches whenever a soft gale passed though them. Every so often he glimpsed a woodland creature in his peripheral vision, but every time he turned to look directly at it, the animal had scurried out of sight. Link smiled, knowing that the forest would to it's best to ensure the two, essentially friendly strangers a safe passage across their lands.

Late that afternoon, Zelda was riding a little ways ahead, he heard her shout out in surprise. He caught up to her and found her standing at the edge of the forest looking down into a valley. When he followed her gaze, his jaw dropped.

"How in the world did we..."

* * *

Well, that's Chapter 5! I'm going on vacation for a several weeks so I'm sorry to tell you that I won't be updating untill the end of August. Untill then, please read and review.

See ya 'round,

Lord S.


End file.
